Hill Country Media Podcast

The Gospel Seed

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 10:15:00 +0000

We have been looking at the gospel of Mark and studying to determine who Jesus is and what is his purpose. Two big things have come so far from this narrative. First, Jesus came as the Son of God preaching that the good news that the kingdom was near. Second, is the response to his healing and preaching - who is this man and with what authority. The demons knew, sinners discovered it, even a tax collector determined it, but those that thought they were the insiders - fast tracking to heaven - they can’t seem to grasp it. We saw last week the theories that arise from the identity of Jesus - liar, lunatic or he is who he says he is; Lord. Why do some people grasp this truth and see and others do not? Because the good news of the kingdom of God is like a seed.

Lunatic, Liar or Lord

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 10:15:00 +0000

Word about Jesus reaches his family and so they set out to find Jesus and seize him because they think he is crazy. Word has also reached Jewish leadership in Jerusalem and they come accusing him of evil. What are these theories trying to deal with? A theory is always trying to make sense of the data. The data these two groups are trying to deal with is the claims and miracles of Jesus.

Called By Name

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:15:00 +0000

Jesus’ popularity is growing and so is the opposition. We find the crowd falling upon Jesus while the demons fall before him. The crowd is nameless and searching for immediate satisfaction but Jesus retreats to call the disciples to himself and name them. He creates a new community and people through this process. The name creates their identity but this is not limited to just the twelve apostles but extends to us as we discover our new name and identity in Jesus.

What We Really Need

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 10:15:00 +0000

In this section, Mark gives us five stories of Jesus’ interaction with the crowds and the building opposition of the religious leaders. We find Jesus forgiving sins, eating with sinners, not following traditional religious duties and reclaiming the Sabbath. In this we discover what we really need and where we find it - we need the Son of Man, a Savior.

Sovereign Servant

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 10:15:00 +0000

In the Gospel of Mark the person of Jesus is more important than the subject of his teaching. If we want to know what the gospel or teaching of Jesus consists of, we are directed to its embodiment in Jesus the teacher, in his journey and actions among people. Mark shows us the nature of the gospel through the focus of Jesus and his displayed authority.

Message and Mission

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 10:15:00 +0000

The first time we hear Jesus’s voice in Mark’s Gospel, he says, “Repent and believe the good news and follow me!” Gospel means “good news”. It literally means “news that brings joy.” This word had currency when Mark used it, but it wasn’t religious currency. It meant history-making, life-shaping news, as opposed to just daily news. A gospel was news of some event that changed things in a meaningful way.

Jesus Christ, the Son of God

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 10:15:00 +0000

Mark’s Gospel is about “the gospel of the kingdom” which consists of these principles: The healing, all-renewing presence of the kingdom of God that has come back into the world and history because Christ is that true King. However, this King comes in a way that reverses the values of the world — in weakness and service, not strength and force — to die as a ransom for us. Therefore we enter this kingdom through the “upside-down” pattern of the King who went to the cross. We are accepted not because of our ability or merit, but through sheer grace and repentance. We “live out” this kingdom by following the “upside-down” pattern of the King who went to the cross. We live lives of sacrifice and service.

Break Free From Religion

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 10:15:00 +0000

Challenged by the Pharisees and lawyers at dinner, Jesus warns them and us to not be blinded by religion. Woe to us! he says, if our hope is in religion rather than the atoning work of Jesus.

Prophet, Priest & King

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 10:15:00 +0000

Jesus said clearly that he was God sent from heaven on a mission to do the will of the Father. He said he came to fulfill all of what the scriptures have said and prepared. So one helpful way to answer this question is to look at the 3 offices woven throughout the Old Testament that are all ultimately fulfilled in Jesus: prophet, priest and king.

The Way of a Disciple

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 10:15:00 +0000

In our consumer-oriented society, people would like the opportunity to combine elements of several religions or even to design one of their own, but Jesus will not allow us this comfortable option. He insists that ultimately there is only one choice. In the Sermon on the Mount the contrast between the two kinds of righteousness and devotion, the two treasures, the two masters and the two ambitions has been faithfully portrayed; now the time for decision has come. Is it to be religion and self-righteousness or Jesus and his righteousness?

Relationships of a Disciple

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 10:15:00 +0000

The Christian community ought to be a supportive family where members are helping each other rise to higher degrees of righteousness, where relationships with God are being renewed and where unbelievers are being drawn to Christ. Unfortunately, it can also be a place where people feel condemned, manipulated and uncared for. Matthew 7 may at first appear to be a series of self-contained paragraphs, but there is a connecting thread—relationships. The Christian counterculture is not an individualistic but a community affair, and relations both within the community and between the community and others are of paramount importance.

The Perspective of a Disciple

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 10:15:00 +0000

Everyone is ambitious to be or to do something. Childhood ambitions tend to follow certain stereotypes—to be an athlete, astronaut or movie star. Adults have their own narrow stereotypes too—to be wealthy, famous or powerful. Materialism is not a problem with possessions but with perspective. The issue is not how much you have in your grasp but how tightly your grasp is on what you have. Materialism affects our perspective as Christians and causes us to take our eye off the kingdom and to worry.

Motivation of a Disciple

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 10:15:00 +0000

In Matthew 5 Jesus taught us that our righteousness must be greater than that of the Pharisees (because they obeyed the letter of the law, while our obedience must include our heart) and greater also than that of the pagans (because they love each other, while our love must include our enemies as well). Now in Matthew 6 Jesus draws the same two contrasts regarding our religion. He says that we should not be hypocritical like the Pharisees and not mechanical like the pagans.

Influence of a Disciple

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 10:15:00 +0000

What possible influence could the people described in the Beatitudes exert in this hard, tough world? What lasting good can the poor and the meek do, the mourners and the merciful--those who seek peace and not war? Would they not be overwhelmed by the flood of evil? What can they accomplish-whose only passion is righteousness and whose only weapon is purity of heart? Are not such people too feeble to achieve anything? Jesus does not share this skepticism, as this passage demonstrates. He expects us to have a profound influence on those around us.

Character of a Disciple

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 10:15:00 +0000

The Beatitudes serve as a sort of preamble to the Sermon on the Mount, as they are a memorable treasure for humanity. They give a concise statement of the character of the kingdom of heaven and its citizens that Jesus has announced and summarize the principles of kingdom life that he will articulate in the Sermon that follows. The Beatitudes are a radically bold statement of Jesus’ intent to establish the kingdom of heaven on earth, which will bring true peace and freedom for all who dare to follow him as his disciples. It is through those disciples that his kingdom will bring blessing to all of the peoples of the earth.

Sermon on the Mount Introduction

info@hcbcds.com (HCBCDS Media) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 10:15:00 +0000

The Sermon on the Mount is probably the best-known part of the teaching of jesus, though arguably it is the least understood, and certainly it is the least obeyed. It is the nearest thing to a manifesto that he ever uttered, for it is his own description of what he wanted his followers to be and to do. The Sermon is found in Matthew’s Gospel toward the beginning of jesus' public ministry. Immediately after his baptism and temptation Jesus had begun to announce the good news that the kingdom of God, long promised in the Old Testament era, was now on the threshold. He himself had come to inaugurate it. With him, the new age had dawned, and the rule of God had broken into history. “Repent,” he cried, “for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matthew 4:17). Indeed. "Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom” (Matthew 4:23). The Sermon on the Mount, then, is to be seen in this context. It portrays the repentance (the Greek meaning is “the complete change of mind”) and the righteousness which belong to the kingdom. That is, it describes what human life and human community look like when they come under the gracious rule of God. And what do they look like? Different! Jesus emphasized that his true followers, the citizens of Gods kingdom, were to be entirely different from others.